Education & the Law

Course Description:A review of the components that comprise the law of public education. This will include schools regarding operating authority, Constitution and Statutory rights, legal and practical aspects of governing bodies, rights and responsibilities of administrators, teachers and students.

This advanced course in education addresses constitutional law, federal and state statutory and regulatory provision and case law . The studies will encompass the development of statutory and case including their impact upon education in the United States and the State of Arizona. The class will analyze and report on analyze major decisions of the United States Supreme Court in the areas of finance, religion, free speech, collective bargaining, student and teacher rights, rights of the disabled, desegregation and discrimination. The major critical legal issues in traditional public charter and private education will be discussed. Each student as a significant part of the class will select from a list of suggested areas or designate an area of interest and prepare a paper power and partner with the instructor to lead the class discussion on the topic. Practical skills application will be used in the final class period with outside witnesses and student participants in all roles involving student expulsion with issues related to guns at school and disability identification by the District.. If scheduling permits a session shall be devoted to an employee grievance and the resolution process. We will analyze two U.S. Supreme Court decisions from June of 2009 involving Arizona, their history and future impact on education.

Course Structure/Approach
This course will consist of lecture, individual and group assignments, written assignments, a mid term examination, class activities, including major topical presentations and a special education due process expulsion hearing.

Key Topic Assignment - One major topic of education law - paper and class presentation.
Grade will be awarded on the following criteria:
Report will be written, organized, without spelling or grammatical errors, uses legal terms appropriately, cites sources appropriately, uses APA format, and is no more than 8 pages in length. Classroom presentation may be assisted by a slide show.

Course Policies - Attendance and preparation of the assignment and willingness to participate in discussion of the issues and materials covered.

Grading/Assessment:
Mid Term-25 % of final grade
Topical Paper, Power Point and Classroom presentation-60% of final grade
Attendance and Participation-Essential as it will constitute 15 % of the final grade